Draft-equalizer.



C. V. BARKER.

DRAFT EQUALIZER.

I APPLICATION FILED MAY 29, 1916. I i ,1 99,520. Patented Sept. 26, 1916.

9 g 21 I; I W v 1 W )5 10 w 7 9 J14 Eqfl' W i g3 g 27 )7 g V i m L Z 1% 7 5 14 27 29 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES V. BARKER, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

DRAFT-EQUALIZER.

Application filed May 29, 1916.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, CHARLES V. BARKER, a citizen of the United States, and resident of Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Draft-Equalizers, of which the following is a specifica tion.

This invention relates to certain new and useful improvements in an apparatus or device, to be used in connection with vehicles, such as wagons, riding cultivators, and the like, for equalizing the draft thereof, and it consists in certain peculiarities of the construction, novel arrangement, combination and operation of the various parts thereof, as will be hereinafter more fully set forth and specifically claimed.

The principal object of the invention is to provide a device of the above namedgeneral character, which shall be simple and inexpensive in construction, strong, durable and efficient in operation, with its parts so made and arranged, that it can be readily applied to wagons or vehicles of the ordinary or well known construction, without any material alteration thereof and with little expense.

A further and more specific object of the invention is to provide means for wagons and the like, to compensate for the side draft thereof, or in other words, for producing a draft at the two sides of the vehicle commensurate with the pull required at the respective sides thereof, to move the same.

Other objects and advantages ofthe invention will be disclosed in the sub-joined description and explanation.

In the accompanying drawing which serves to illustrate an embodiment of the inventionFigure 1 is a plan view of the front axle, a part of the wheels thereof and a portion of the tongue of the vehicle showing my improved draft equalizer mounted thereon in its operative position, and illustrating the parts as they will appear in a straight or direct pull. Fig. .2 is a View partly in section and partly in .elevation taken on "line 22 of Fig. 1, looking in the direction indicated by the arrows. Fig. 3 is a similar view takenon-the same line but showing a modification in the construction and arrangement of the parts of the equalizer, and Fig. 4 is a crosssectional view of the tongue of the-Vehicle showing a mod} Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 26, 1916.

Serial No. 100,449.

fied form of the stop bar or member illustrated in Fig. 3, mounted thereon.

Like numerals of reference refer to corresponding parts throughout the different views of the drawing.

The reference numeral 7 designates the front axle of the wagon or vehicle, which axle may be of the ordinary or any well known construction, and has mounted thereon, in the usual manner, near each of its ends a wheel 8 and 9, and said axle also has extended forwardly from its middle portion a tongue or pole 10, which may be connected to the axle 7 in any of the usual or well known ways. Mounted horizontally on the upper surface of the tongue 10, and near and in parallelism with the axle 7 is a stop-bar or member 11, which is securely bolted to the tongue, as shown in Fig. 1, and is provided at each of its ends with a pair of spaced apart prongs 12 and 13, which prongs provide recesses at the ends of the bar or member 11 for the reception and operation of the rear end of the draft" member or spider, which is designated as a whole by the reference numeral 14, and is by preference, of substantially the shape shown in Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawing, that is to say, said member .or spider is of a flat frame-like construction, having its sides 15 of its front portion converged forwardly and united and braced at their rear portions with a transverse bar 16, which is by preference integral with the side members 15 as shown. Extended rearwardly from the rear portions of the side members 15, are arms 17, which are slightly inclined toward each other as shown in Fig. 1 of the drawing. Each of the arms 17 has on its inner surface, near its rear end, a shoulder or projection 18, to rest against, under certain conditions, the front surface of the stop-bar 11 at the inner ends of the recesses formed by the prongs 12 and 13 of said bar. Extended forwardly from the middle portion of the memberor bar 16,is another bar 19, which is united at its front end to the side portions 15 at their apex or juncture, and the last named bar is also by preference integral with the side portions 15 and bar 16-of the draft member. At its front end the draft member 14 is provided with an upwardly and forwardly extended lug or portion 20 which isformed with a vertical opening to receive a bolt .or pin 21, which gpin ris extended through :a suitable opening in the double-tree 22, at the middle thereof and also through a suitable opening in the front end of the draft member 14, as will be readily understood by reference to Fig. 2 of the drawing. The lower end of the bolt 21 may be provided with a nut 23 to prevent its dislocation.

By the foregoing arrangement, it will be understood that the double-tree, which carries at each of its end a swingle-tree 24, will be pivotally mounted on the front end of the draft member 14, which member is mounted for independent movement, and free of the tongue 10, as the bolt 21 does not extend into the latter. The arms 17 of the draft member are located one in each of the recesses at the ends of the stop-bar 11, so that the shoulders or projections 18 on said arms, will, on a straight or direct pull of the vehicle, be located at a slight distance in front of said stop-bar. Connected to the draft member 14, at each of its sides and about mid-way between its front and rear ends, is a chain, cable or other flexible connection 25, which has its rear end connected in any suitable manner to the axle 7 near the wheel thereon.

In some classes of vehicles or wheeled agricultural machines, it is desirable to moimt the draft member 14 beneath the tongue and also to place the double and swingle-trees beneath the tongue, and in Figs. 3 and 4 of the drawings, I have shown a modified construction for so mounting said parts. This modification consists in providing a stop-bar or member 11 which is fastened to the tongue 10 as in the other construction, but the member 11 is provided with downwardly and then laterally extended portions 26 having recesses in their ends, as is clearly shown in Fig. 4 of the drawing. The portions 26 are united on their lower surface by a brace bar 27 which strengthens the parts 26 as is apparent. The draft member 14 used in this modified arrangement, is of exactly the same construction as that shown in Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawing and above described, except that it is provided near its front end with a loop or eye 27 for the engagement with a link 28 which link is suspended from a hanger 29, mounted on the tongue 10, as is clearly shown in Fig. 3 of the drawing. The double-tree 22 carrying the swingle-trees 24 is mounted on the front end of the draft member 14 in the same manner as in the first described instance.

From the foregoing and by reference to the drawing, it will be readily understood and clearly seen, that when the pull on the vehicle is straight or direct, that the cables or chains 25 will be taut. But should one of the wheels, say the one indicated by the nueral 9, strike an obstruction, or become impeded in its progress, the pull on the draft member 14, through the medium of the double-tree and sWingle-trees, will be such that said draft member will be shifted with respect to the stop-bar 11 and tongue 10, so that the shoulder or projection 18 on the arm 17 adjacent to the wheel 8 will strike against the front surface of the stop-bar, in which operation the chain or cable 25, adj a cent to the wheel 8 will be slackened, while the other chain or cable will become taut, and that thus the strain or draft will be equalized. Should the other wheel become impeded in its progress or strike an obstruction, the reverse movement of the draft member will take place and the shoulder 18 of the other arm 17 will engage the stop-bar 11, near its end adjacent to the wheel 9, as is apparent. In the modified construction, the same operation will be carried out.

While I have shown each of the arms 17 of the draft member 14 as being provided with shoulders or projections 18 on their inner surfaces, yet I do not wish to be understood as limiting myself to their use, as they may be omitted, if desired, when it is obvious that the inner surfaces of the arms 17 will alternately engage the inner ends of the recesses between the prongs 12 and 13 of the stop-bar or member, when the draft or pull on the draft member 14 is such as to make taut one of the chains or cables 25 and the other one slackened. In this operation, it is obvious that the arm 17 of the draft member which rests against the inner end of its recess, will provide a positive fulcrum for the draft member and thus give greater leverage to the obstructed or impeded side of the vehicle where it is most needed. In other words, by using my improvements, it is apparent that I provide a draft equalizer which turns independently of the tongue, and on bearings placed on either side and away from the center of the tongue, thus making it quickly responsive and with the least movement of the draft member from the center of the tongue, throwing the en tire draft on the side where required to keep the tongue straight in the direction the team is going.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. The combination with the axle of a vehicle, of a tongue extended therefrom, a stop member transversely mounted in front of said axle and having a guide-way at each of its ends, a draft member mounted for independent movement with respect to the tongue mainly in front of said stop member and having at its rear portion parts located in said guide-ways, a flexible connection uniting each side of the draft member to the axle, and means pivotally connected to the front of the draft member for applying power thereto. a

2. The combination with the axle of a vehicle, of a tongue extended therefrom, a stop member transversely mounted on the tongue and having a guide-way at each of its ends, a draft member mounted for independent movement with respect to the tongue mainly in front of said stop member and having at its rear portion parts located in said guideways provided with projections to alter nately engage the stop member, a flexible connection uniting each side of the draft 10 member to the axle, a double-tree pivotally mounted on the front part of the draftmemher, and a sWingle-tree mounted on the double-tree on each side of its pivot.

CHARLES V. BARKER. Witnesses:

CHAS. C. TILLMAN, A. E. OLSON.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G. 

